Losing your cool isn't always because of everyday stress. Find out why emotional health issues like frustration and impulsivity could be symptoms of adult ADHD.

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Have
you ever been stuck in traffic and found yourself pounding the steering wheel
and feeling like your head might explode? If that's an all-too familiar
scenario, you could have adult ADHD.

About 50
percent of kids with attention
deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) grow up to be adults with ADHD,
and some adults with ADHD aren’t aware that they have it. Hyperactivity
symptoms of ADHD seen in kids may be replaced with emotional health symptoms
such as frustration and impulsivity in adult ADHD.

A recent study by Massachusetts General Hospital found that more
than half of adults with ADHD have emotional health problems related to
excessive emotional reactions to everyday events. They also found that this
combination of ADHD and the inability to control emotions tends to run in
families and could affect more than 5 million American adults.

"The areas of the brain that are responsible for
hyperactivity in ADHD are also responsible for emotional control, so it is not
surprising that these symptoms overlap," says Guy K. Palmes, MD, associate
professor of psychiatry at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center in Winston-Salem,
N.C.

"ADHD runs in families, and if a child has ADHD, usually
one parent has it," Dr. Palmes says. "Although studies say that about
4 percent of adults have ADHD, I suspect that about half of adult ADHD is not
being diagnosed and many adults have ADHD and don't know it."

Emotional
Health and ADHD Symptoms in Adults

For adults
with ADHD, excessive emotional reactions can occur quickly in response to normal
stresses that would be difficult but acceptable for people without
adult ADHD.

Common
emotional health symptoms associated with adult ADHD can include:

Depression

Mood swings

Impulsivity

Outbursts of anger

Frustration

Impatience

"Controlling
my emotions can be most difficult even with therapy and
medication," says David G. Hanley, a 61-year-old sales professional from
West Hartford, Conn., who was diagnosed with ADHD as an adult.

"Being
in sales and dealing with a four-year economic collapse has been tough,"
Hanley says. “I have to constantly deal with my tendency for impatience and
intolerance. You can't be successful in sales if you alienate your accounts.”

In
adults who aren’t diagnosed or treated for ADHD, excessive emotional reactions
can lead to problems in social, family, and business relationships. Untreated
adult ADHD is also a common trigger for substance
abuse problems.

Getting Adult
ADHD Symptoms Under Control

The
right diagnosis and treatment can turn around emotional distress. "Finding
out there was a reason and a treatment for my symptoms has been a blessing,”
Hanley says. “With medication and therapy, I am now able to let go of the
things I can't control, and life is definitely easier."

Talk
therapy and sometimes medication both help control adult
ADHD symptoms and can lead to better emotional health. “It's
important for people with ADHD to learn what triggers their symptoms so they
can start to anticipate and manage their stress," explains Palmes. Talk
therapy, a form of counseling, can help with that.

Try
these other
strategies as well:

Get educated about ADHD.

Use organizational strategies like making lists
and carrying a calendar.

Get to work early and plan projects for the time
of day when you are most able to concentrate.

Don't let
ADHD ruin your emotional health. If you haven’t been diagnosed but have
symptoms, especially if you had ADHD as a child or have a family history of
ADHD, talk to your doctor and take steps to regain control over your life.

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